Canonical has just released the latest version of Ubuntu, 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot, to end users. Most prominent among its new features are upgrades to the Unity interface, the new shell introduced in version 11.04. New users can download the open source OS from the Ubuntu web site, and current users can try their luck upgrading their existing install through the Update Manager.

Other changes include the replacement of the Evolution email client with Mozilla Thunderbird, version 3.0 of the Linux kernel, and the ability for developers to sell software through the Ubuntu Software Center. Newer versions of Ubuntu's built-in apps, including Firefox and OpenOffice, are also included.

Ubuntu is officially available in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions, though ports (and forks like Kubuntu and Xubuntu) are available for other architectures and platforms as well. The next release, 12.04 ("Precise Pangolin"), is due in April of 2012, and will be an "LTS" or Long Term Support version supported by Canonical for three years after its release.

They already did. Linux never gave up on alternative architectures, with many distros still supporting long dead architectures like MIPS, as well as adding support for newer ones like ARM.

Ubuntu is one of the only mainstream distros that only supports x86. The other big boys (Fedora, Debian, ArchLinux and some derivatives of those) all support more architectures than Windows ever did and ever will.

As for the kernel itself: it was the basis for both WebOS and Android. 'nuff said me thinks.Reply

It's not, desktop oriented distributions doesn't support it. Debian is used in many embedded systems be it PowerPC, MIPS or ARM.

It's a second class unofficial support citizen on desktop oriented systems like Fedora, Ubuntu, Suse (not current or up to date mind you) by third party teams or as secondary projects. Obviously every major community distro does target ARM however, not as a main platform though, but that's not something strange neither are they platforms for none-developers. It's perfectly explainable. Mips is also used in many enterprise equipments like switches and other network equipment and technologies besides being embedded in TVs, NAS-boxes, home-routers, mediastreaming devices, STB's, Blu-ray players and all that. Most of them being based on a GNU/Linux SDK. You even have Android MIPS-ports because it's so popular. There are even MIPS-based Android handsets out there.

Ubuntu happens to be one of the major platforms organizations like Linaro uses to port Linux to their platforms, doesn't mean Canonical supports it on the standard distro though you won't find it on the download page, but they do release ARM-images for some desktop-like systems. Canonical has been targeting ARM to partner with chip makers for while though. With Ubuntu mobile and so on before.Reply